Amendment saving Allentown, Bethlehem 911 centers fails in State House

A state bill that would push Allentown and Bethlehem's 911 centers to consolidate with local county dispatch centers moved one step closer to passage Tuesday as the House voted down several amendments supported by Lehigh Valley lawmakers.

The bill, which would update the Public Safety Emergency Telephone Act, would increase surcharges on monthly phone bills to $1.65 to fund 911 centers across the state. Surcharges are currently $1.25 for landlines in the Lehigh Valley and $1 for cell phones. Landline fees have not been updated since the 1990s.

In addition to increasing rates, the bill also makes a strong push for the state's last two remaining city-run 911 dispatch centers, located in Allentown and Bethlehem, to consolidate with Lehigh and Northampton counties. In the most recent version of the bill, 911 money would be channeled to counties rather than cities, and city-run centers would be directed to join a county or regional dispatch center.

State Rep. Peter Schweyer, D-Lehigh, who sits on the House Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee where the bill originated, has argued that city/county mergers would hurt not help Allentown and Bethlehem. He introduced several amendments Tuesday with the support of Republican and Democratic lawmakers from the Lehigh Valley to preserve funding for the city call centers and to allow the two cities to merge with each other.

Allentown and Bethlehem's 911 centers are intertwined with each city's public safety strategy, Schweyer said. Operators at each center monitor city surveillance camera networks and dispatch emergency officials as needed. The result has been a drop in crime, he said.

Lehigh County 911 Director Laurie Bailey says the operation handles over 300 calls for service a day.

Lehigh County 911 Director Laurie Bailey says the operation handles over 300 calls for service a day.

"Allentown and Bethlehem pay for those cameras themselves," Schweyer said. "We're not asking for a handout. We're asking to continue our status quo."

State Rep. Stephen Barrar, R-Chester, the bill's sponsor, said that 911 centers across the rest of the state had already consolidated at the county or regional level. Lehigh and Northampton counties have four 911 centers within eight miles of each other, he said.

"All they need to do is throw a switch, and they can handle the call volume," Barrar said of Lehigh County. "They prepared for this day to come."

State Rep. Gary Day, R-Berks/Lehigh, said a merger would take years to arrange. It's not a matter of throwing a switch, he said.

"You're ripping the carpet out from underneath of the urban core of the Lehigh Valley," Day said.

Barrar added that watching surveillance cameras should not be part of a 911 operator's job.

"Highly-trained dispatchers should not be sitting around watching TV monitors like mall security guards," he said.

Schweyer's amendment to preserve funding for Allentown and Bethlehem's 911 systems failed by a vote of 87-103. A second amendment that would have allowed Allentown and Bethlehem to consolidate with each other failed with a vote of 89-100, despite arguments from several Lehigh Valley lawmakers.

State Rep. Bob Freeman, D-Northampton, noted that one of the primary goals of the legislation was to encourage consolidation and regionalization. Allentown and Bethlehem have similar problems and concerns, and a city-to-city consolidation would solve the problem of how to separate Bethlehem which is divided between Northampton and Lehigh counties, he said.

"Give these folks the ability to merge together as one unit," Freeman said.

The House is expected to vote on the 911 bill Wednesday. If it passes, it would move to the Senate.